流行美語 第206課

这是个周末，Larry和李华在Larry叔叔的农场里摘了一天的苹果。李华会学到两个常用语：chock full和doohickey。

LL: Wow, Li Hua, your basket is chock full of apples.

LH: Chock full of apples？你是不是说我的篮子都装满了？

LL: Yeah, chock full means full to the point of overflowing¹, and I don't think you could put another apple in that basket.

LH: 噢，chock full是指篮子不仅满了，而且是满得快掉出来了。那也是，我这篮子里是一个也放不下了。Larry，你的篮子怎么还没有装满呀？

LL: You are right. My basket is not as chock full of apples as yours, but I have an excuse!

LH: Excuse！ 什么理由？

LL: When I'm out picking apples on a nice, sunny day in the fresh air, I start to think about things. Soon my mind is chock full of ideas, but I'm afraid my basket isn't chock full of apples.

LH: 我才不信呢！什么一到阳光明媚，空气新鲜的环境里摘苹果，你就开始动脑子。那你倒说说，今天都想了些什么呀！

LL: I was thinking of things we could do with these apples. My aunt has a cabinet in the kitchen chock full of recipe books.

LH: 你在想怎么处理这些苹果? 得了，这是你动作慢的借口罢了。不过，我对你说的你阿姨厨房里的食谱倒很感兴趣，咱们去找她聊聊吧。

LL: And while we are in the kitchen talking to my aunt, we can have a little snack. She has a jar on the counter that is chock full of cookies.

LH: 饼干我就不吃了， 太油太甜，They are chock full of sugar and fat.

LL: Oh, a little sugar and fat won't hurt you, Li Hua. Besides the cookies are chock full of things that are good for you, like nuts, oatmeal and peanut butter.

LH: 饼干里有果仁，麦片和花生酱？这些都是对身体有好处的？多吃了也是一样不好，你只是嘴巴谗而已！

LL: Ha, ha, Li Hua. Very funny. Hey, while we on are way to the kitchen, let's stop by my uncle's tool shed.

LH: 你要先去看看你叔叔的工具房？ 好呀！

******

LL：Boy, I forgot my uncle has so many tools. Can you hand me that doohickey on the tool bench?

LH: Doohickey是什么呀？

LL: Oh, I should have been more specific, Li Hua. A doohickey is a generic² term for a tool or a gadget³.

LH: Doohickey是工具或小型工具的总称。那你要的是哪个呀？

LL: I want the doohickey in the middle of the bench。

LH: 在板凳当中的那个， 给你。Larry，这个东西是干什么用的？

LL: This doohickey is one of the greatest inventions of all time. It is an apple corer, peeler and slicer.

LH: 这玩艺儿既能削皮，挖掉苹果的核还能把苹果切成片，有这么多功能呀。怪不得你说它是最伟大的发明之一。

LL: Yes, it does. This doohickey may look simple, but it is a good tool to have in a country kitchen when you have a lot of apples.

LH: 当然啦，在这样的农村厨房里，摘了那么苹果，有这么一个工具当然好呀！这个工具怎么用的？

LL: Well, first you stick the entire doohickey on a flat surface of a table.

LH: OK， 先把这工具放在平的桌面上。我来试试， 看看这个东西是怎么切苹果的。

LL: Put the apple here like this. And then turn the handle of the doohickey. And there you have it -- a cored, peeled, and slice apple!

LH: 把苹果放在这里，然后转动这个把手。真的耶，你看，皮也削了，核也没了，而且已经切成片了。

LL: Isn't this doohickey great?

LH: Wow! 真有意思， 你叔叔的工具房里还有什么好的小玩艺儿呀? Any other interesting doohickeys ?

今天李华学到了两个常用语。一个是chock full , 意思是装的满满的。还有一个是doohickeys，意思是工具。
 

1 overflowing   

n. 溢出物,溢流 adj. 充沛的，充满的 动词overflow的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The stands were overflowing with farm and sideline products. 集市上农副产品非常丰富。
• The milk is overflowing. 牛奶溢出来了。

2 generic   

adj.一般的，普通的，共有的

参考例句：

• I usually buy generic clothes instead of name brands.我通常买普通的衣服，不买名牌。
• The generic woman appears to have an extraordinary faculty for swallowing the individual.一般妇女在婚后似乎有特别突出的抑制个性的能力。

3 gadget   

n.小巧的机械，精巧的装置，小玩意儿

参考例句：

• This gadget isn't much good.这小机械没什么用处。
• She has invented a nifty little gadget for undoing stubborn nuts and bolts.她发明了一种灵巧的小工具用来松开紧固的螺母和螺栓。